More than anything, this season has been a mental challenge for Henrik Lundqvist.

The Rangers’ matchup with the Ducks on Sunday will be the goaltender’s first start in over a week, which is the second time this season he has had eight days in between appearances in net. The last time stretched from Dec. 2 against Vegas to Dec. 10 in Los Angeles, when Lundqvist was dealing with a minor back injury.

It’s taken some adjusting for Lundqvist to get used to his playing schedule, which has been reduced in favor of Alexandar Georgiev. It’s nothing he can prepare for with practice, but something he has had to tackle internally.

“Technically and physically, you’re working pretty much every day,” Lundqvist said after practice Saturday. “It’s your mind. You’re off and on, off and on, and it’s just — you learn how to approach it. There’s going to stretches where you play less and the last couple of weeks for different reasons — I had the back issue and Georgiev playing well — all you can do is just focus on your own game, your performance and be ready when they tell you to play. I look forward to playing.”

Lundqvist, 37, said his approach is to “control what you can control,” adding he puts heavy emphasis on how he practices and how he analyzes his own game. Lundqvist said he has used this most recent time off to look at areas of his game that need improvement.

According to Lundqvist, it’s important to refrain from overreacting to certain things. But he also sees the need to be honest while assessing his own game.

“I know I’m doing a lot of good things when you break down my game, saves versus scoring chances and stuff like that,” Lundqvist said. “I know I’m on the right track here, it just comes down to one play here and there and getting some bounces.”

Friday’s 6-3 loss to the Maple Leafs was Georgiev’s sixth start in the past eight contests. The 23-year-old has started between the pipes just two times fewer than Lundqvist (7-7) so far this season, posting a 9-7 record. Coach David Quinn has been transparent about his approach with the two goaltenders, noting the decision is often influenced by opponents and who has the hot hand.

Quinn knows how big of a change this has been for Lundqvist, who has been the No. 1 goalie for the Rangers since the second month of his rookie 2005-06 season. And the second-year coach appreciates how Lundqvist has responded.

“I see someone who is adapting to change, like all of us do,” Quinn said. “The thing I love about him is every time we talk about the situation, he fully embraces it. He understands it, he gets it and like I’ve said a lot, because it’s been a topic we’ve all talked about, it has been a quirky two weeks.“He lost two starts because of a lower-body situation, Georgiev played well and Georgiev played last night because of his success against Toronto. So, as I’ve always said, there’s going to be situations throughout the course of the season where this might happen. Let’s let the season play out, he’s going to play a lot of hockey for us.”

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